UNITED STATES QOLF ASSOCIATION GREEN S O U T H E A S T E RN SECTION O F F I CE ROBINSON stern Director Georgia Coasta! Plain Experiment Station TIFTON, GEORGIA * A SOUTHEASTERN TURFLETTER Vol. Not 3 Deo3mber 1954 THE BUDGET All of us realize that good turf is not an accident. program of labor, materials, maintenance, and an extra helping of patience and common sense. This suggests to us a word, budget, which perennially harrasses the greens committee and golf course superintendent . During the 1951 Southeastern Turf Conference, Mr • Crawford Rainwater of the Pensacola Country Club, Fensacola, Florida, and former secretary of the Southern Golf Association, gave a few pointers on planning and budgeting maintenance operations of a golf course. These are presented as suggestions which may be of benefit in your clubs' budgeting and maintenance operations. It takes a well planne First, lay the foundation for management The greens committee and the superintendent are the cornerstones. From a golfing point of view, the greens committee is the most important committee of a golf club. What are some of the qualifications of a good greens committee ? 1. The committee should be composed of not less than three members- appointed or elected in such a manner'that only one new member w i ll be added to the committee each year. members to become acquainted with the various details and to become sufficiently informed to make intelligent decisions. It takes time for new committee 2. The golfing membership of the club, both high and low handicap players should be represented. types of members•••.and don't overlook the ladies, bless Interest should be centered on pleasing a ll fem¿ 3. Each committee member should: a. If possible, have previous knowledge and experience in turf b# Have demonstrated a genuine interest and ability in growing culture. better t u r f. cf Be open-minded» d» Be -willing to devote sufficient time to the study of problems affecting the course. Now that we have a greens committee, l e tfs turn the table and look at some of the qualifications of a superintendent through the eyes of a golfer or the committee» 1. He should be a golfer so that he can better understand the players' point-of-view« 2t He should have sufficient education to be able to keep records accurately and read up on the latest available information» 3» He must be receptive to new ideas which have been proven by those better qualified than himself» 4» he must be a good organizer and leader of men» 5» He should have i n i t i a t i ve and work closely with the greens committee* Second, the management group analyzes the condition of the course They then itemize each condition and determine the order of accomplishment» The analysis should always be from the players1 point-of-view» To obtain this point-of-view, many clubs use a "suggestion box11 or a letter to the membership» Whenever a suggestion has been carried through, a selling job has been performed and the club member who made the suggestion becomes interested in the tasks of the superintendent and greens committeeo Third, lay out a well balanced program In order to get the most value out of a specified budget, it mvy be necessary to make an annual estimate of materials and labor» The following method has been used at the Pensacola Country Club, Pensacola, Florida: 1» Determine the size of a ll areas 'to: a» Estimate total f e r t i l i z er requirements» b» Estimate topdressing requirements« c» Estimate seeding requirements'for ryegrass, etc» d» Estimate requirements of fungicides and weed k i l l e r s» 2* Prepare an outline of work to; a» Insure that every job w i ll be accomplished» b0 Evenly distribute the work load» c» Obtain maximum use of labor» d» Estimate labor requirements» The following is an example of a work outline for one month: Spend as much time as possible preparing topdressing f or future use» Monday-7. Begin spiking fair-ways and follow with 500 pounds per acre of 4-12-12• Monday-21.Apply li pounds nitrogen per 1000 square feet on greens« Monday-28.Apply r|- pounds nitrogen per 1000 square f e et on tees« Treat greens to prevent disease at 7 to 10 day intervals, necessary« if "WEATHER WATCHER MAKES USE OF MAXIMUM LABOR Many times superintendents look at the local weather and wonder whether or not to send a work crew to the opposite side of the course. The apparent promise of a quick rain often delays operations and may during the year cause the loss of many man hours. Joe Yiildman, Superintendent of Birming- ham Country Club, Birmingham, Alabama, prevents the loss of such man hours by the use of a barometer. it looks like rain, Joe checks his barometer before sending out a -work crew* He also makes use of the instrument in picking up his crew« Joe states that during rainy -weather and busy seasons of the year the barometer -will pay for i t s e lf in a very few days» If TURF CONFERENCES Throughout the growing season, several important Turf Conferences are held in various sections of the Nation. Several of these are held in the Southeast. Generally an important part of the over-all turf grass picture is presented at these meetings. The emphasis at each meeting is placed on practicability, usefulness, and application. Each person who attends feels that he has accomplished an objective, being a bit better off in some -way than before. Now is the time to make your plans to attend one or more of the Turf Conferences. We -would like to particularly urge greens chairmen or members of the greens committees to attend. Some of these Conferences in -which you -will be interested are: 26thNational Turfgrass Conference and Show, Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, St. Louis, Mo. $ January 16-21, 1955. Southern Turf Conference, Memphis,- Tenn. , February 21-22, 1955 Southeastern Turf Conference, Tifton, Georgia , April 5-6, 1955 Florida Turf Conference, Gainesville, Fla.# August, 1955. THE TURFLETTER IS DESIGNED FOR SUBSCRIBERS The last issue of our Turfletter reminded golf clubs and other interests of turf that the letter is designed to keep them up-to-date in the f i e ld of turf management. It is unfortunate, ho-wever, that -we cannot continue mailing the Turfletter to a ll of our present mailing l i s t. Within the near future, it -will be necessary to send the letter only to golf clubs who have subscribed to the Regional Turf Service and to subscribers of the Research and Education Fund of the USGA. Has your club subscribed? Southeastern Turfletter U S GA G R E EN S E C T I ON 0. J• Noer Milwaukee Sewerage Commission Box 2079 Milwaukee 1, Wis. Sec. 34.06, P.L. & R. U. S. POSTAGE 1 y2c PAID TIFTON, GA. Permit No. 46